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BEflKELEY.  CALIFORNIA 


BULLETIN 


The  (State  Board  OF  Education  OF /Idaho 


V  Number  1— JUNE,  1914 


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Educational  Conditions^ 

IN  IDAHO 

WITH  SPECIAL  REFERENCE  TO 

THE  STATE  EDUCATIONAL 
INSTITUTIONS 


Special  Report  of  the  Commissioner  of  Education  (t  .(p4^u^^crv».\ 
to  the  State  Board;  appgved  by  the 
Board  for  Pul 


Application  for  entry  as  second-class  matter  at  the  postoffice  at  Boise,  Idaho,  pending. 


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STATE  OR    IDAHO 

STATE   BOARD  OF   EDUCATION 

AND 
BOARD  OF  REGENTS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  IDAHO 


David  L.  Evans President Malad 

Term  expires  April,  1915 

Herman  J.  Rossi Vice-President Wallace 

Term  expires  April,  1916 

l(Hl5*^Rl.AND Secretary Payette 

Term  expires  April,  1917 

^    Evan  Evans Grangeville 

^  Term  expires  April,  1918 

Wai^TER  S.  Bruce Boise 

Term  Expires  April,  1919 

Grace  M.  Shepherd,  Superintendent  Public  Instruction, .Boise 

ex-officio 


Edward  O.  Sisson, 
Commissioner  of  Education 


LA 


Introductory  Note. 

The  report  contained  in  this  bulletin  presents  a  brief  sum- 
mary of  educational  conditions  in  the  State  and  a  proposal  for 
reorganization  of  the  State  institutions.  On  this  subject  the 
Board  and  the  Commissioner  have  sought  not  only  facts  but 
also  advice  and  suggestions  from  many  sources  throughout 
the  State ;  the  report  is  the  outcome  of  this  study,  and  is  pub- 
lished for  the  consideration  of  the  people  of  the  State.  The 
proposed  change,  or  any  other  plan  calling  for  considerable  re- 
construction would  of  course  require  action  by  the  Legislature. 
The  aim  of  the  plan  is  to  increase  and  disseminate  educational 
opportunity  without  increasing  cost.  The  key-note  of  the 
method  is  co-operation. 

Certain  points  in  the  work  of  the  State  Board  of  Education 
are  of  such  general  interest  that  the  following  brief  statements 
may  be  made  concerning  them. 

First  is  the  question  of  economy.  The  state  educational 
institutions  are  being  conducted  with  the  strictest  economy. 
Care  is  being  taken  not  to  injure  or  derange  the  work  of  these 
schools,  but  no  needless  expenditure  is  allowed  and  the  great- 
est results  are  sought  for  all  money  spent.  The  funds  of  each 
institution  for  the  biennium  are  expended  subject  to  a  budget 
approved  by  the  State  Board ;  separate  expenditures  ? .  e  ap- 
proved if  large,  by  the  Board ;  if  small,  by  a  committee.  The 
Board  expects  to  finish  the  biennium  without  deficits  and  Avith 
some  surpluses.  Full  financial  statements  for  all  the  institu- 
tions will  be  made  in  the  Biennial  Report. 

There  has  been  considerable  discussion  concerning  the  du- 
plication due  to  the  existence  of  both  a  Commissioner  of  Edu- 
cation and  a  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction.  The 
Act  passed  in  1913  establishing  the  present  State  Board  of  Ed- 
ucation seems  clearly  to  intend  the  Commissioner  of  Educa- 
tion to  be  the  general  adviser  and  executive  of  the  Board.  (See 
Section  6,  paragraph  1).  In  fact  when  the  bill  was  introduced 
a  joint  resolution  was  also  introduced  proposing  a  constitu- 
tional amendment  "so  that  the  State  Superintendent  will  no 
longer  be  one  of  the  executive  officers  of  the  State,  to  be 
elected  biennially."  (H.  J.  R.  No.  24).  But  while  the  bill 
passed  and  became  law,  the  resolution  did  not  come  to  a  vote. 
It  should  be  made  clear  that  the  enactment  of  such  an  amend- 
ment is  indispensable  to  the  completion  of  the  new  plan  of 
state  educational  administration.  Meanwhile  the  Commis- 
sioner and  State  Superintendent  are  working  in  harmony  and 
avoiding  the  duplication  and  conflict  which  might  arise  under 
the  circumstances.  This  has  been  possible  because  the  Super- 
intendent and  Assistant  Superintendent  are  both  staunch  sup- 
porters of  the  new  plan  of  administration.  This  special  prob- 
lem is  before  the  Board  for  consideration  and  further  report 
may  be  made  later. 

099 


GENERAL  PRINCIPLES. 

Tihe  end  and  aim  of  all  our  educational  efforts  is  the  wel- 
fare and  development  of  our  children.  The  State  must 
think  of  all  the  children,  and  do  its  best  to  open  the  doors 
of  education  to  all  as  nearly  alike  as  possible.  At  best  we 
cannot  achieve  perfection  in  this;  we  cannot  bring  a  Uni- 
versity or  even  a  good  high  school  within  walking  dis- 
tance of  every  home;  indeed,  it  will  be  some  time  before 
we  can  have  a  first  class  district  school  accessible  to  every 
child  in  the  state.  But  we  must  do  the  best  we  can,  and 
make  every  dollar  expended  reach  as  many  as  possible.  Lo- 
cations must  be  determined,  buildings  built,  equipment 
provided,  teachers  employed,  courses  of  study  arranged, 
with  the  sole  end  of  bringing  the  greatest  good  educa- 
tionally to  the  greatest  number. 

The  following  report  deals  chiefly  with  the  regular  state 
educational  institutions,  the  University,  Normal  Schools 
and  Academy.  This  is  because  the  State  Board  has  imme- 
diate charge  of  these  institutions,  and  because  the  people 
of  the  state  are  expecting  information  concerning  them 
and  recommendations  for  their  reorganization.  It  has 
been  necessary  for  the  Commissioner  and  the  Auditor  thus 
far  to  give  most  of  their  attention  to  these  institutions. 

The  supreme  problem  educationally  is  the  improve- 
ment of  the  common  schools,  and  especially  the  rural 
schools.  This  for  two  reasons;  first,  because  only  in  these 
common  schools  are  all  of  the  children  of  the  state  touched ; 
but  few,  relatively,  reach  even  the  high  schools,  and  an  ex- 
ceedingly few  go  beyond  to  attend  normal  school  or  col- 
lege. There  were  in  1913  less  than  800  students  of  college 
grade,  not  more  than  6000  of  high  school  grade,  and  about 
85000  enrolled  in  the  elementary  schools. 

With  regard  to  expenditures  for  the  public  schools 
there  is  undoubtedly  some  waste,  and  much  inefficiency 
and  loose  accounting.  The  Board  is  preparing  standard 
forms  for  accounts  and  reports,  and  is  collecting  facts  (tq 
which  to  base  a  report  and  recommendations. 

T!he  imipoverished  and  neglected  rural  school  de- 
mands the  very  first  attention  of  the  state.  Hundreds  of 
children  are  deprived  of  any  except  the  most  meager  school- 
ing under  untrained  and  inexperienced  teachers.  Other 
districts  have  money  to  waste.    For  example,  one  district 


5 

may  have  an  assessed  valuation  of  |20,000-|30,000   per 
child,  and  another,  less  than  |50  per  child. 

The  schools  must  strive  to  fit  the  children  more  ef- 
fectively for  the  life  and  oecupation  that  lies  before  them. 
This  means  a  modification  of  what  children  do  in  school 
and  how  they  do  it.  This  is  the  greatest  of  all  educational 
problems.     This  involves: 

Vocational  training  and  guidance;  we  must  help 
each  child  to  find  the  calling  for  which  he  is  suited,  and 
then  give  him  training  to  fit  him  for  it.  Especially  must 
we  strive  to  stop  the  rush  into  clerical  and  professional 
pursuits,  and  promote  the  more  directly  productive  call- 
ings. 

Training  for  character.  This  involves  intelligence 
and  right  purpose,  with  respect  to  citizenship,  vocation, 
parenthood,  and  family  life,  and  social  relations  in  general. 

Progress  depends  upon  the  better  training  of  teach- 
ers, and  the  training  of  more.  At  least  half  of  our  teachers 
are  untrained.  Some  know  little  more  than  the  children 
they  are  supposed  to  teach. 

Especially  is  there  a  dearth  of  competent  teachers 
of  agriculture;  all  our  high  schools  are  rightly  ambitious 
to  teach  this,  but  trained  teachers  are  almost  non-existent. 

One  other  point  must  be  made  clear  concerning  this 
report;  it  deals  merely  with  the  machinery  of  higher  edu- 
cation in  the  state,  and  not  with  the  essence.  We  must 
work  out  a  plan  which  will  provide  an  efficient  state 
school  administration ;  we  must  next  attack  the  problem  of 
the  best  culture  and  training  for  the  young  men  and  women 
in  these  state  and  local  schools.  No  one  who  studies  high 
school  and  college  conditions  can  escape  deep  suspicion 
that  some  things  need  to  be  changed.  It  is  useless  to 
build  up  schools  and  supply  equipment  and  employ  teach- 
ers, unless  the  work  of  these  schools  is  training  hetter  citi- 
zens, more  efficient  workers,  wiser  and  stronger  men  and 
loomen.  The  state  has  a  right  to  make  great  demands 
of  those  who  partake  of  the  peculiar  privilege  uf  a  higher 
education;  these  young  people  are  the  favored  few,  a 
chosen  people;  but  they  must  understand  that  they  are 
chosen  not  for  their  own  selfish  advantage  but  for  the  serv- 
ice of  the  state  and  their  felloio  citizens. 


6 

FACTS  AND  CONDITIONS. 
/.    General  View. 

The  state  of  Idaho  maintains  six  state  schools,  two  of 
them  are  special,  the  Industrial  Training  School  at  St. 
Anthony,  for  children  below  eighteen  years  of  age  com- 
mitted by  the  Courts  for  crimes  and  misdemeanors  or  in- 
corrigibility ;  the  State  School  for  the  Deaf  and  Blind,  the 
name  of  which  describes  its  function.  These  schools  are 
not  so  closely  related  as  the  other  four,  and  are  not  so 
much  involved  in  the  general  educational  problem.  Hence, 
while  fully  realizing  their  importance,  we  leave  them  for 
the  regular  biennial  report  to  be  made  to  the  next  legisla- 
ture. 

The  other  four  are  the  regular  educational  institutions 
supported  and  controlled  by  the  state — the  University,  the 
Lewiston  and  Albion  Normal  Schools,  and  the  Academy 
of  Idaho.  These  are  the  schools  which  constitute  the  most 
immediate  problem  of  the  State  Board  of  Education.  It 
was  more  on  account  of  these  schools  than  for  any  other 
reason  that  the  new  administration  of  state  educational  af- 
fairs was  enacted  by  the  people  and  the  Legislature. 

The  public  schools,  under  the  charge  of  the  district 
boards  are  assumed  to  provide,  first  in  all  cases,  an  elemen- 
tary school  training,  usually  covering  a  period  of  eight 
years,  between  the  ages  of  about  six  and  fourteen.  This 
is  all  that  the  smaller  districts  can  do ;  but  whenever  a  dis- 
trict begins  to  have  four  or  five  teachers  it  gives  some 
further  training  in  high  school  work.  There  are  now  in 
the  state  about  134  high  schools,  of  which  over  60  cover 
the  full  four  years  of  work.  The  total  enrollment  is  ap- 
proximately 6000  or  about  7  per  cent  of  the  total  school 
enrollment.  This  proportion  of  high  school  students  to 
total  enrollment  is  about  the  same  as  in  Montana,  and 
much  lower  than  in  Washington,  Oregon  and  Utah.  A 
largij  proportion  of  the  children  in  the  state,  certainly 
more  than  half,  have  no  high  school  opportunity  in  tbeir 
home  districts. 

This  is  the  public  school  system  upon  which  the  state 
schools  must  be  based.  Our  task  is  to  survey  the  whole 
field  and  see  if  the  two  parts  of  the  system  can  be  more 
perfectly  fitted  to  each  other;  and  in  particular  whether 


the  funds  being  spent  by  the  state  can  be  made  to  bring 
higher  and  better  returns  than  at  present.  _ 


//.  The  State  Institutions, 
1.     University  of  Idaho, 

1.  The  University  is  the  only  state  institution  in  Idaho 
of  full  collegiate  rank,  and  it  includes  the  advanced  work  in 
all  lines.  Thus  it  does  work  which  is  in  some  states  divided 
between  the  University  and  the  Agricultural  College,  or 
even  shared  by  a  School  of  Mines  in  addition  to  these.  Com- 
parison with  adjoining  states  shows  that: 

(a)  We  have  fewer  students  in  proportion  to  our  pop- 
ulation than  most  of  our  neighbor  states.    See  table  VI. 

(b)  We  pay  less,  in  proportion  to  population,  for  this 
part  of  our  educational  system  than  Montana,  Washington, 
Oregon  or  Nevada ;  and  probably  also  than  Utah  and  Wy- 
oming, although  a  comparison  with  these  is  difficult  on 
account  of  the  arrangement  of  their  work.     See  T^ble  VII. 

2.  In  considering  the  expenses  of  the  University  it  must 
remembered  that  a  large  part  of  the  work  of  the  institu- 
tion is  for  the  State  at  large.  The  total  maintenance  in- 
come (for  all  purposes  except  buildings  and  improve- 
ments) from  State  and  Federal  funds  for  the  present  bien- 
nium  is  |477,100 ;  of  this  |118,800,  or  over  24  per  cent  is 
applied  exclusively  to  experiment,  demonstration  and  ex- 
tension work.  This  leaves  an  annual  income  of  $179,150 
for  instruction,  equipment  and  supplies  at  the  University. 

3.  The  cost  per  student  is  high  in  the  University  of 
Idaho  in  the  same  departments  as  in  other  Universities — 
Engineering  and  Agriculture.  This  is  due  partly  to  the 
high  cost  of  giving  the  instruction;  teachers  in  these  de- 
partments command  high  salaries,  and  the  equipment  and 
supplies  are  more  expensive.  But  the  chief  cause  is  the 
small  number  of  students  in  certain  classes.  The  most 
careful  effort  is  being  made  to  keep  down  expense  in  these 
lines;  but  Agriculture  and  Engineering  (including  min- 
ing) are  of  vital  importance  to  the  State,  and  great  care 
must  be  taken  to  avoid  damage  to  these  great  interests. 
The  great  need  is  more  students  in  these  important  sub- 
jects. 

4.  South  Idaho  is  represented  in  the  University  more 


8 

than  is  generally  known.  In  the  present  year,  48  per  cent 
of  the  Idaho  students  in  the  University  are  from  South 
Idaho.  What  is  still  more  striking  and  important  is  that 
in  the  Senior  class,  nearly  56  per  cent  are  from  the  South. 
It  is  clear  that  the  higher  work  at  the  University  belongs 
quite  as  much  to  one  part  of  the  state  as  to  the  other. 

This  should  be  kept  in  mind,  as  it  bears  strongly  upon 
the  problem  of  the  reorganization  and  readjustment  of  our 
whole  system  of  state  schools.     See  Table  IV. 

The  President  is  giving  earnest  attention  to  the  effi- 
ciency and  economy  of  the  whole  institution,  and  will 
have  reports  and  recommendations  to  make. 

2.     Lewiston  Normal  School* 

This  school  is  in  a  favorable  situation  for  normal  school 
work,  being  in  a  fair  sized  and  growing  city,  with  good 
schools  in  the  city  and  abundant  rural  schools  in  the  sur- 
rounding country.  The  city  and  rural  schools  are  cooper- 
ating splendidly  with  the  Normal  School  to  the  great  ad- 
vantage of  all  concerned. 

Tihe  Normal  School  is  year  by  year  reducing  the  dupli- 
cation between  it  and  the  high  schools,  and  concentrating 
on  distinctive  normal  work.  The  result  of  this  is  shown 
in  the  great  increase  in  full  course  graduates.  Over  60 
per  cent  of  the  students  are  of  collegiate  standing.  The 
cost  of  the  school  in  relation  to  its  enrollment  is  reasonable, 
being  not  greater  than  the  average  of  standard  normal 
schools. 

There  are  possibilities  of  co-operation  between  the  Uni- 
versity and  the  Normal  School  yet  untouched.  Under  the 
new  plan  of  control  these  possibilities  open  up.  The  presi- 
dents of  the  two  schools  have  already  taken  the  matter  up, 
and  we  may  expect  recommendations  looking  toward 
greater  economy  and  efficiency  through  co-ordination  of 
effort  and  work.  The  outcome  will  probably  be  that  the 
Lewiston  school  will  become  an  integral  part  of  the  Uni- 
versity, so  that  both  students  and  teachers  may  be  trans- 
ferred from  one  to  the  other  when  desirable,  thus  eliminat- 
ing unnecessary  duplication  and  raising  efficiency. 


♦See  Table  VIII. 


3.    Albion  Normal  School. 

This  school  forms  one  of  the  most  difficult  problems  of 
the  state  educational  administration. 

Those  in  charge  of  this  school  struggle  against  a  hope- 
less handicap.  The  nearest  regular  passenger  railroad  sta- 
tion is  twenty  miles  away ;  there  are  times  in  winter  when 
the  journey  is  a  serious  undertaking;  the  nearest  freight 
station  is  twelve  miles  distant;  this  greatly  increases  the 
cost  of  all  heavy  supplies  brought  in  from  outside;  for  ex- 
ample, coal  which  costs  at  Pocatello  |4.50  per  ton,  costs  at 
Albion  19.50. 

One  of  the  essentials  for  a  successful  normal  school  is  the 
nearness  of  schools  both  graded  and  rural  in  which  the 
students  may  obtain  practical  experience.  Albion  is  re- 
mote from  such  opportunities  and  presumably  will  be  so  for 
many  years  to  come. 

The  enrollment  of  the  school  has  grown  but  slowly,  in 
spite  of  gre^t  efforts  to  advertise  it  through  the  press, 
through  bulletins,  and  by  personal  representatives.  More- 
over, the  number  of  students  who  had  completed  a  high 
school  course  has  always  been  small  and  does  not  show  an 
increase  proportionate  with  the  increase  of  high  schools 
in  the  state.  At  present  less  than  30  per  cent  of  the  stu- 
dents are  in  the  advanced  classes  or  normal  school  proper ; 
the  other  70  per  cent  are  of  secondary  grade.  Tlius  the  bulk 
of  the  work  parallels  and  to  an  extent  duplicates  the  work 
of  the  high  schools. 

REGISTRATION    STATISTICS. 

< Output « 

Full      Part 
Number  of  course   course 

Entering  Hig^h  School  Enroll-  di-      certifi- 

Year—  class  graduates  entering  meat  ploma    cates 

1909-10  107      18      (16%)      186      19      14 

1910-11  Ill      25      (20%)      176      10      18 

1911-12  94      24      (25%)      171      15      28 

1912-13  129      46      (35%)      186      16     59 

1913-14  128      34      (26%)      214 

There  has,  however,  been  a  great  increase  in  cost: 

Building's,  Improvements, 

Year—                                      Maintenance  Equipment  Total 

1907-8 $18,982.78  $24,030.74  $43,013.52 

1908-9  18,745.12  7,608.43  26,352.55 

1909-10  34,200.41  22,821.08  57,021.49 

1910-11  32,061.27  33,216.10  65,277.37 

1911-12  42,819.49  2,579.49  45,398.98 

1912-13  42,819.49  2,579.49  45,398.98 

1913-14  41,007.71  20,170.63  61,178.34 


10 

These  statements  are  not  intended  to  imply  any  criticism 
upon  those  in  charge  of  the  school  as  trustees;  they  pur- 
sued the  same  course  that  trustees  have  in  general  all  over 
the  country ;  they  were  deeply  interested  in  the  school,  gave 
freely  of  their  time  and  energy  in  its  interest,  and  naturally 
saw  its  good  points  large  and  its  drawbacks  small. 

It  should  be  noted  here  that  in  1911  a  Legislative  investi- 
gation Committee,  consisting  of  six  members,  in  a  report 
showing  much  insight  into  the  situation,  recommended  the 
discontinuance  of  the  Albion  Normal  School,  citing  as  rea- 
sons: (1)  inaccessibility;  (2)  high  cost  of  mainten- 
ance; (3)  unsatisfactory  character  of  immediate  loca- 
tion; (4)  small  proportion  of  advanced  students. 

The  recommendation  did  not  propose  anything  to  take 
the  place  of  the  school,  and  this  may  have  been  partly  the 
reason  why  the  Legislature  did  not  approve  and  enact  the 
recommendation. 

4.    The  Academy  of  Idaho. 

The  Academy  of  Idaho  was  founded  when  high  school 
facilities  in  the  state  were  very  meager.  Since  that  time 
the  development  of  high  schools  throughout  the  state  has 
been  little  short  of  marvelous;  the  people  of  the  cities, 
towns  and  even  rural  communities  have  vied  with  each 
other  in  erecting  buildings,  obtaining  teachers  and  equip- 
ment, and  introducing  the  newer  and  especially  the  prac- 
tical branches.  One  high  school  now  enrolls  nearly  a 
thousand  students,  and  at  least  four  others  range  from  250 
to  350.  There  are  altogether  not  less  than  134  high  schools 
in  the  state,  a  number  of  which  have  work  in  agriculture, 
home  economics,  manual  training,  commercial  work,  and 
other  vocational  subjects,  as  well  as  the  older  "standard" 
subjects,  such  as  English,  History,  Mathematics,  Sciences, 
Foreign  Languages.  Moreover,  no  movement  is  more  vigor- 
ous today,  in  Idaho  and  generally  in  the  United  States, 
than  the  development  of  the  public  high  school. 

All  this  changes  completely  the  relation  of  a  State  Acad- 
emy to  the  public  school  system.  Such  an  Academy 
now  finds  itself  in  competition  with  the  high  schools,  and 
covers  practically  the  same  ground  as  the  larger  high 
schools  do. 

On  the  basis  of  average  attendance,  the  Academy  costs 
about  three  times  as  much  per  student  as  the  high  schools. 


11 

In  other  words,  the  money  spent  at  the  Academy  would 
educate  in  our  best  high  schools  about  three  times  as 
many  Idaho  boys  and  girls  as  are  now  being  trained  in 
the  Academy. 

One  third  of  the  students  in  the  Academy  belong  quite 
as  naturally  in  the  Pocatello  High  School,  being  residents 
of  that  city.  This  hinders  the  growth  of  the  Pocatello  High 
School,  which  has  fewer  students  than  several  smaller 
cities  in  the  state. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  great  majority  of  the  high  schools 
in  the  state  are  taking  in  pupils  from  outside  of  the  home 
district  and  educating  them  either  free  or  at  a  small  tuition 
charge.  Six  of  the  larger  high  schools  take  care  of  372  out- 
side students,  a  half  more  than  the  attendance  at  the 
Academy.  These  students  cost  the  state  nothing;  they 
pay  a  moderate  tuition  fee  in  some  cases,  and  the  local  dis- 
trict does  the  rest.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  not  less  than  500 
or  600  young  people  are  being  educated  in  the  state  in  this 
way. 

To  put  it  very  briefly,  the  State  is  educating  secondary 
students  at  high  cost  in  the  Academy,  while  the  high 
schools  throughout  the  state  are  educating  at  least  twice  as 
many  from  outside  their  districts  at  no  cost  to  the  state. 

The  Legislative  Investigating  Committee  in  1911  made 
the  following  report  concerning  the  Academy : 

"We  also  find  that  they  have  an  enrollment  of  287.  Of 
this  number,  47  are  duplicating  the  regular  high  school 
course  and  the  remaining  240  are  taking  a  course  of  techni- 
cal training,  which  is  usually  supplied  by  first  class  high 
schools  throughout  the  state.  We  believe  that  the  greater 
part  of  the  work  can  be  done  and  should  be  done  by  the 
high  school  districts  throughout  the  state. 

///.   The  High  Schools.* 

We  cannot  solve  the  problem  of  the  state  institutions 
without  considering  the  public  high  schools.  These 
schools  are  largely  the  product  of  the  last  ten  j^ears;  that 
is,  they  have  developed  since  the  establishment  of  the  state 
institutions.  From  the  records  available  it  may  be  safely 
estimated  that  in  1903  there  were  not  more  than  ten  four 
year  high  schools,  as  against  over  60  now. 

So  eager  are  our  people  for  high  school  facilities  close  to 

♦A  bulletin  on  High  Schools  is  being  prepared. 


12 

home  that  many  districts  are  going  beyond  their  means  to 
establish  high  school  courses.  Districts  which  ought  to  be 
content  with  an  elementary  school  are  giving  one  or  two 
or  even  four  years  of  high  school  work.  Many  districts 
are  really  starving  the  lower  grades,  and  thus  the  majority 
of  the  pupils,  in  order  to  provide  a  meager  high  school. 
The  ambition  is  most  worthy;  but  we  should  satisfy  it  with- 
out sacrificing  the  welfare  of  the  younger  pupils. 

There  are  over  1000  district  schools  enrolling  over  50,000 
pupils,  without  any  high  school  work;  certainly  many  of 
these  young  people  should  go  to  high  school.  Where  shall 
they  go?  A  few  go  to  the  Academy  of  Idaho;  certainly 
not  more  than  150.  As  already  stated,  the  vast  majority 
who  get  any  education  above  the  eighth  grade  go  to  the 
nearest  good  high  school.  Under  present  conditions  this 
works  a  double  hardship;  the  parents  often  must  pay  tui- 
tion; and  the  district  maintaining  the  high  school  pays  the 
bulk  of  the  cost  of  educating  pupils  who  belong  elsewhere. 
Practically  every  high  school  of  any  size  is  burdened  in 
this  way. 


CONCENTRATION   AND   DISTRIBUTION   OF   EDU- 
CATIONAL FACILITIES.* 

There  are  certain  general  principles  that  bear  upon  the 
supply  and  demand  of  educational  facilities  everywhere. 
The  following  especially  should  be  kept  in  mind: 

I.  The  presence  of  a  school  in  any  region  stimulates 
young  people  to  attend  school;  in  other  ivords^  a  school 
creates  students.  If  you  put  a  high  school  into  a  commun- 
ity that  has  not  had  a  high  school,  boys  and  girls  who  had 
previously  no  intention  of  going  further  in  school  will  en- 
roll and  attend. 

Schools  and  colleges  everywhere  draw  the  bulk  of  their 
enrollment  from  their  immediate  vicinity.  A  study  of  the 
list  of  students  of  practically  any  institution  will  show 
this. 

This  is  the  great  argument  against  too  much  concentra- 
tion. If  we  miass  our  educational  oppertunities  in  one 
place  we  leave  the  rest  of  the  state  unfilled ;  many  children 

♦See  Tables  III.  and  IV. 


13 

who  have  the  talent  and  capacity  for  higher  education  will 
fail  to  get  it. 

II.  Younger  students,  especially  in  the  high  school 
period,  do  not  and  should  not  go  far  away  from  home  to 
attend  school. 

1.  They  do  not  go  far  from  home.  When  the  University 
of  Idaho  had  a  preparatory  school  only  11  per  cent  of  the 
enrollment  came  from  South  Idaho;  the  great  majority 
came  from  close  around  Moscow.  In  the  State  Academy 
at  Pocatello,  half  of  the  students  come  from,  Bannock 
County;  even  from  neighboring  counties  very  few  attend 
the  Academy;  for  example,  in  Bonneville  County,  while 
three  went  to  the  Academy  in  1912-13  over  50  went  from 
their  home  districts  to  the  Idaho  Falls  High  School,  in 
most  cases  paying  tuition  for  the  privilege,  and  this  in  spite 
of  the  great  superiority  of  the  resources  and  equipment 
of  the  Academy. 

2.  They  should  not  go  far  from  home,  because  they  are 
still  in  a  plastic  and  unformed  state  of  mind  and  character, 
susceptible  to  influences  which  affect  their  habits  and  prin- 
ciples ;  hence,  they  need  care  and  oversight  of  home 
and  parents. 

3.  High  School  work  must  be  adapted  specially  to  the 
needs  and  conditions  of  the  particular  locality.  In  one 
place  agriculture  should  be  emphasized,  in  another  mechan- 
ical work,  or  business  courses,  and  so  on.  The  work  of  the 
school  should  be  linked  up  with  the  industries  and  occu- 
pations of  the  surrounding  region. 

III.  The  older  and  more  advanced  the  students  a/re,  the 
further  they  travel  in  search  of  the  kind  of  schooling  they 
want. 

1.  Taking  all  the  state  schools  together,  272  students 
make  the  ^^big  jump"  from  North  Idaho  to  South  or  vice 
versa.  Of  these  only  62  are  doing  work  that  is  in  any  sense 
of  high  school  grade;  and  most  even  of  these  young  people 
are  either  high  school  graduates  or  old  enough  to  be  such. 
All  the  rest,  210  in  number,  are  of  college  grade. 

2.  In  the  University,  while  the  per  cent  from  South 
Idaho  in  the  first  year  runs  from  40  to  45  per  cent,  in  the 
Senior  year  it  runs  from  55  to  60  per  cent. 

IV.  As  pupils  go  through  the  various  grades  of  schools 
there  is  a  process  of  elimination  and  selection.    All  must 


14 

go  to  the  elementary  school,  and  very  few  indeed  go  higher. 
In  our  own  state  and  public  schools  there  are  about  90,- 
000  pupils  in  the  elementary  schools;  not  more  than  6000 
in  high  school  grades,  and  less  than  800  of  college  grade. 
Moreover,  while  there  are  419  in  the  first  two  years  of  col- 
lege, there  are  only  129  in  the  last  two  years.  That  is,  we 
have  eight  times  as  many  in  high  school  grades  as  in  col- 
lege, and  three  times  as  many  in  the  lower  college  years  as 
in  the  upper. 

V.  The  cost  of  instruction  increases  rapidly  from  grade 
to  grade.  $30  per  pupil  is  rather  a  high  cost  in  the  ele- 
mentary grades ;  |50  is  a  low  cost  in  high  school  work ;  col- 
lege instruction  is  much  more  expensive,  and  in  general  the 
more  advanced  it  is  the  higher  the  cost. 


THE  TKAINING  OF  TEACHERS. 

The  supply  of  trained  teachers  is  never  equal  to  the  de- 
mand in  any  of  the  western  states.  A  large  number  of 
schools  have  to  get  along  with  raw  and  almost  uneducated 
boys  and  girls,  hardly  any  older  or  wiser  than  the  children 
they  teach.  Last  year  the  two  state  normal  schools  turned 
out  only  61  graduates  (full  course)  and  158  who  had  cer- 
tificates for  partial  courses.  This  total  output  would  not 
supply  a  quarter  of  the  demand. 

A  number  of  states  after  striving  to  meet  the  need 
through  normal  schools  alone  have  turned  for  help  to 
the  high  schools.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  a  large  number  of 
high  school  graduates  take  up  teaching  at  once  without 
further  training.  This  suggested  the  idea  of  putting  into 
the  high  school  some  preparation  for  teaching,  and  led  to 
the  teachers'  courses  which  are  now  given  in  many  high 
schools.  This  plan  has  been  officially  adopted  in  a  num- 
ber of  states,  including  New  York,  Vermont,  Minnesota, 
Wisconsin,  Michigan,  Nebraska  and  Kansas.  In  every  case 
it  has  won  the  approval  of  those  most  competent  to  judge 
of  its  success  and  consequently  is  being  developed  more 
and  more  as  time  goes  on. 

A  report  on  this  plan  says :  "In  the  combined  states  of 
Kansas,  Minnesota,  Michigan,  Nebraska,  New  York  and 
Wisconsin  there  are  more  than  four  hundred  and  thirty-five 
training  classes  in  operation.     From  the  training  classes 


15 

and  schools  in  these  states  over  four  thousand  are  being 
graduated  annually  and  this  number  is  increasing  rapidly. 
Kansas  graduated  seven  hundred  teachers  from  her  high 
schools  last  year  and  expects  to  increase  this  number  by 
half  the  present  year.  Nebraska  has  sent  out  two  thous- 
and two  hundred  and  seven  teachers  from  her  high  schools 
during  the  past  three  years  and  is  new  sending  out  ap- 
proximately nine  hundred  a  year  into  the  rural  schools. 
Judged  merely  from  the  standpoint  of  numbers  the  normal 
training  work  in  secondary  schools  is  very  successful. 
Judged  by  what  appears  at  this  distance  to  be  the  general 
consensus  of  opinion  of  those  who  have  given  the  actual 
work  careful  consideration  it  seems  to  be  meeting  expec- 
tations fully."  (Proceedings  Washington  Educational 
Association,  1910;  p.  97). 

It  must  be  remembered  that  the  high  school  course  does 
not  take  the  place  of  the  advanced  course  in  the  normal 
school,  but  only  supplements  the  lower  work  of  the  normal ; 
with  a  full  development  of  the  high  school  training  course 
it  would  become  possible  for  a  normal  school  to  devote  it- 
self to  advanced  work  and  eliminate  the  part  of  its  course 
which  now  to  some  extent  duplicates  or  parallels  the  high 
school. 

These  facts  bear  strongly  upon  our  educational  problem 
in  Idaho,  and  must  be  kept  in  mind  in  seeking  a  solution. 
Several  of  our  larger  high  schools  are  already  planning 
courses  for  teachers. 


INFERENCES. 

What  may  we  conclude  from  the  above  facts  and  prin- 
ciples? 

1.  W"e  cannot  "concentrate"  high  school  instruction ;  we 
must  disseminate  it  as  widely  as  our  resources  will  permit. 

2.  On  the  other  hand,  the  highest  and  most  advanced 
instruction  ca^n  be  concentrated,  because  few  seek  it,  and 
they  will  travel  any  reasonable  distance  to  obtain  it,  and 
are  sufficiently  mature  to  be  on  their  own  responsibility. 
And  it  must  be  concentrated,  because  duplication  will  in- 
volve great  increase  in  cost  and  lowering  of  efficiency.  This 
means  one  University,  and  only  one  in  the  state. 

3.  Now  between  the  most  advanced  work,  which  must 


16 

be  concentrated  in  one  institution  of  highest  rank,  and  the 
secondary  or  high  school  work,  full  four  year  courses  of 
which  are  even  now  in  operation  in  more  than  sixty  places 
in  the  state,  there  is  an  important  middle  ground,  con- 
sisting of  the  first  two  years  of  the  college  course.  This 
coincides  with  the  advanced  course  in  a  normal  school, 
that  is  the  part  of  the  normal  course  that  does  not  in  any 
way  parallel  the  high  school.  This  two  years  above  the 
high  school  is  sometimes  called  the  Junior  College^  and 
we  will  adopt  that  name  for  the  sake  of  convenience.  Owing 
to  geographical  conditions  in  Idaho  the  Junior  College  idea 
has  peculiar  interest,  hence  we  will  discuss  it  at  length 
in  the  next  chapter. 


THE  JUNIOR  COLLEGE. 

The  work  of  the  Junior  College,  that  is  the  first  two 
years  above  the  high  school,  can  be  added  economically 
to  a  large  and  well  equipped  high  school  for  the  following 
reasons : 

1.  The  subjects  of  instruction  in  the  upper  grades  of  a 
large  high  school  overlap  those  of  the  first  and  second 
years  of  college ;  this  is  true  of  foreign  languages,  several 
courses  in  mathematics,  chemistry,  physics,  botany,  some 
mechanical  and  technical  courses,  European  and  English 
history,  and  some  other  subjects.  That  is,  some  students 
take  these  subjects  in  high  school  and  some  take  them  in 
college. 

2.  Moreover,  in  any  large  well-equipped  high  school 
there  are  both  facilities  and  teachers  adequate  for  col- 
lege work.  In  our  own  state  there  are  a  goodly  number 
of  high  school  teachers  who  might  properly  be  members  of 
a  college  faculty. 

As  a  very  natural  consequence  of  this  a  number  of  large 
high  schools  in  various  parts  of  the  country  have  added 
slightly  to  their  faculty  and  equipment  and  extended  their 
courses  to  include  one  or  two  years  of  college  work.  Thus 
the  Junior  College  is  not  an  untried  experiment  or  a  mere 
theory,  but  a  fact  and  a  proved  success.  The  High  School 
at  Joliet,  Illinois,  has  carried  on  Junior  College  work  for 
12  years.     The  principal.  Dr.  J.  Stanley  Brown,  writes : 

"The  number  asking  for  such  work  is  steadily  growing, 
and  the  greatest  support  for  it  comes  from  the  fathers 


17 

and  mothers  unwilling  to  send  boys  and  girls  sixteen  to 
eighteen  years  of  age  from  their  protected  home  surround- 
ings to  the  more  or  less  unprotected  life  in  the  big  univer- 
sities. Added  to  this  is  the  fact  that  all  our  classes  in  col- 
lege work  are  small,  numbering  from  six  to  twenty,  while 
the  classes  in  the  large  universities,  which  our  students 
enter  in  large  numbers,  range  from  twenty  to  one  hundred." 

In  Los  Angeles,  California,  Junior  College  courses  were 
first  offered  in  the  Los  Angeles  High  School  in  February, 
1912,  classes  being  organized  in  the  subjects  of  the  first 
Freshmen  semester,  with  37  students  enrolled.  The  present 
enrollment  is  200.  This  work  is  accepted  without  exami- 
nation by  the  University  of  California  and  Stanford  Uni- 
versity. Thus  it  is  possible  for  a  student  to  finish  two 
years  of  his  college  course  in  the  Los  Angeles  Junior  Col- 
lege and  enter  the  Junior  year  at  the  University  without 
loss  or  inconvenience. 

One  of  the  great  dangers  and  difficulties  of  our  larger 
universities  is  the  great  miass  of  students;  a  professor  in 
one  of  the  largest  institutions  in  the  west  said  of  his  own 

university:     "The  University  of is  swamped  with 

shoals  of  students  whom  it  cannot  take  care  of."  Now  it  is 
the  "Underclassmen,"  or  the  Junior  College  students  who 
cause  this  overcrowding  and  the  trouble  and  injury  that 
results  from  it.  One  of  the  disastrous  results  of  the  lower 
classes  in  the  larger  universities  is  the  vast  number  who 
drop  out  through  failure  or  discouragement  in  the  first 
year.  In  our  own  university  from  last  year's  freshmen 
class  of  145  there  came  a  Sophomore  class  this  year  of  only 
80.  In  larger  institutions  the  loss  is  usually  much  greater, 
running  over  60  per  cent  in  some  cases.  For  example,  in 
one  state  university  fromi  its  Freshman  class  of  1693 
members,  less  than  660  returned  for  the  Sophomore  year. 

The  plan  of  having  Junior  Colleges  in  a  number  of 
centers  away  from  the  university  is  the  only  remedy  yet 
discovered  for  this  great  and  growing  evil.  The  larger 
state  universities  are  urging  the  establishment  of  such  col- 
leges. 

The  Junior  College  can  be  operated  economically  only  in 
connection  with  a  large  high  school,  for  the  reasons  indi- 
cated in  paragraphs  1  and  2. 

But  while  the  first  two  years  of  college  work  can  be 
added  to  a  large  high  school  at  comparatively  small  cost, 
the  advanced  w^ork  of  the  upper  college  years  is  far  more 


18 

costly,  both  in  equipment  and  teaching  force,  and  should 
not  be  undertaken  except  where  abundant  resources  are 
available.  As  we  have  seen  this  work  must  be  strictly  con- 
centrated in  one  institution. 

The  situation  in  Idaho  forcibly  suggests  the  Junior  Col- 
lege plan.  First,  because  of  the  extraordinary  difficulty 
of  traveling  from  the  South  to  the  University.  Second, 
because  of  the  existence  of  two  distinct  centers  of  popula- 
tion in  the  South,  practically  dividing  the  whole  Southern 
population  between  them  and  being  easily  accessible  from 
all  parts.  Again  the  plan  adapts  itself  easily  and  naturally 
to  the  future  growth  and  development  of  the  country;  ad- 
ditional Junior  College  centers  can  be  organized  wherever 
the  population  justifies  it. 

The  need  of  some  provision  for  college  work  in  Southern 
Idaho  is  still  further  shown  by  the  numbers  of  Idaho  stu- 
dents attending  colleges  in  other  states ;  in  39  institutions 
there  are  from  North  Idaho  27  students,  from  South  Idaho 
226;  more  than  four  times  as  many  go  from  the  South, 
in  proportion  to  population. 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  over  100  of  the  above  226  are  in 
the  first  two  years;  148  more  go  from  South  Idaho  to  do 
work  of  the  first  two  college  years  in  the  University  and  the 
Lewiston  Normal  School ;  thus  there  are  from  South  Idaho, 
at  least  250  students  of  "Junior  College"  grade  now  at- 
tending college.  Tlhere  are  many  others  who  would  attend 
if  opportunity  offered  nearer  home. 

A  serious  loss  to  the  state  is  incurred  through  our  prom- 
ising young  people  going  to  college  in  other  states :  experi- 
ence shows  that  they  are  likely  never  to  return,  but  to 
accept  positions  in  the  region  where  they  attend  school.  At 
present  more  students  from  South  Idaho  go  to  other 
states  than  attend  our  own  University.  Junior  College 
facilities  in  the  South  would  tend  to  change  this. 


PROPOSALS  FOR  REORGANIZATION. 

/.     TTw  Problem. 

The  great  problems  in  our  situation  are  these: 

1.     Clearly  the  first  duty  is  to  provide  for  students  now 

attending  the  Academy  and  the  Albion  Normal  School. 

Although  these  are  relatively  few  in  number  compared  with 


19 

the  many  who  need  help,  yet  they  have  a  special  claim  and 
any  proposed  plan  for  reorganization  must  guard  their  wel^ 
fare  and  progress. 

2.  To  provide  more  abundant  high  school  opportunities 
for  the  great  number  of  boys  and  girls  who  are  now  de- 
prived of  them  in  whole  or  in  part. 

3.  To  train  more  teachers  for  the  rural  and  city  schools. 

4.  To  relieve  so  far  as  possible  the  hardship  suffered 
by  South  Idaho  students  who  wish  to  go  to  college  and  at 
present  must  either  make  the  long  journey  to  the  Univer- 
sity or  enter  some  other  institution,  usually  outside  of  the 
state. 

We  have  seen  that  the  two  state  schools  in  the  South, 
while  intended  to  meet  the  second  and  third  of  these  needs, 
are  not  doing  so  efficiently  and  cannot  do  so,  owing  to  the 
circumstances  under  which  they  operate.  The  fourth  prob- 
lem is  not  met  at  all. 

The  following  proposal  is  based  upon  the  most  careful 
and  exhaustive  consideration  of  the  facts  and  conditions 
and  of  the  educational  principles  involved.  No  infallibil- 
ity or  final  correctness  is  assumed  for  it.  If  adopted,  it 
would  grow  and  change  to  fit  conditions  and  circum- 
stances. It  is  put  forward  for  the  consideration  of  the 
Board,  and,  if  they  approve,  of  the  people  and  Legisla- 
ture. 

//.     Changes  in  Present  Organization. 

1.  We  should  recognize  the  fact  that  the  Albion  Normal 
School  cannot  be  made  successful  and  efficient,  owing  to 
the  drawbacks  of  the  situation,  and  cease  to  attempt  to 
operate  it.  There  is  no  reason  why  the  plant  cannot  be 
utilized  for  other  state  purposes.  A  number  of  possible 
uses  have  been  suggested.  All  movable  equipment  can 
easily  be  utilized  either  locally  or  elsewhere.  Those  now 
attending  the  school  can  be  provided  for  amply  by  the 
plans  outlined  below. 

2.  The  immediate  fact  in  the  Academy  situation  is  the 
presence  in  Pocatello  of  two  separate  groups  of  secondary 
students,  a  little  over  two  hundnred  in  each  group,  one 
group  in  the  Academy  and  the  other  in  the  high  school. 
These  two  groups  have  in  general  the  same  educational 
needs,  and  are  doing  largely  the  same  work.  There  will 
be  no  true  efficiency  until  these  two  groups  are  combined 


20 

under  one  unified  administration.  They  will  then  make 
up  a  splendid  body  of  400  or  500  students,  the  material 
for  one  of  the  finest  secondary  schoolsi  in  the  Northwest. 
We  cannot  throw  the  Pocatello  High  School  on  the 
state;  neither  the  state  nor  the  city  of  Pocatello  would 
tolerate  that.  Even  the  present  situation  goes  too  far 
in  that  direction,  as  78  Pocatello  secondary  students  are 
being  educated  at  the  cost  of  the  state.  The  other  alterna- 
tive is  co-operation — let  the  state  join  forces  with  the  local 
school,  in  both  secondary  work  and  such  higher  toorlc  as 
the  situation  demands.  The  Academy  plant  can  be  utilized 
in  this  way  far  more  fully  and  efficiently  than  at  presenr. 
The  cost  of  maintenance  can  be  greatly  reduced,  and  a 
splendid  institution  can  be  built  up,  worthy  of  the  state 
and  the  city.  This  is  proposed  as  part  of  the  plan  out- 
lined below. 

3.  The  two  schools  would  continue  substantially  as  at 
present  until  July,  1915,  Avhen  the  reorganization  would 
be  begun ;  the  most  careful  plans  would  be  made  to  effect 
the  changes  with  the  least  possible  friction  and  loss. 

4.  Students  now  in  attendance  at  Albion  and  the 
Academy  would  be  provided  for  in  the  new  co-operative 
system,  the  Junior  College  at  Pocatello  particularly 
would  be  planned  to  meet  their  needs. 

5.  This  would  render  the  present  annual  income  of  the 
two  institutions,  over  |114,000,  available  for  the  far-reach- 
ing plan  proposed  below.  This  will  cover  all  the  state's 
expenditures  involved  in  the  plan  outlined  below,  includ- 
ing co-operative  payments  and  all  other  items. 


Ill,     Plan  for  Reorgamzation  on  Co-Operative  Basis, 

1, — Co-operative  High  Schools. 

First,  to  provide  for  pupils  in  whose  home  districts 
there  are  no  adequate  high  school  facilities ;  enter  into  co-, 
operative  relations  with  the  strongest  and  most  accessible 
high  schools  throughout  the  state,  requiring  the  school  to 
meet  certain  standards  in  the  course  of  study,  equipment, 
and  teaching  staff,  and  to  receive  free  of  tuition  outside 
pupils  up  to  a  certain  maximum  number.  In  return  the 
state  to  pay  an  annual  sum,  based  upon  the  quality  and 


21 

character  of  the  work  done,  and  the  number  of  outside 
students  enrolled.  ~ 

The  state  would  supervise  and  assist  the  work  of  these 
co-operating  schools  and  check  up  the  amount  and  quality 
of  service  being  rendered. 

Each  school  receiving  state  funds  would  be  required 
particularly  to  provide  vocational  training  adapted  to  the 
localitj^  In  many  cases  the  first  line  would  be  agricul- 
ture; the  state  payment  might  be  made  contingent  in  the 
beginning  on  the  introduction  of  a  strong  course  in  agri- 
culture, in  charge  of  a  well  trained  and  efficient  teacher. 
This  would  advance  agriculture  education  at  once  beyond 
what  it  could  attain  in  years  without  state  aid.  This 
feature  of  the  plan  alone  might  well  be  worth  more  to 
the  state  than  the  whole  cost  involved. 

A  number  of  the  larger  schools  throughout  the  state 
would  provide  special  courses  for  teachers^  especially  for 
the  rural  schools.  With  such  courses  in  operation  it 
would  soon  be  possible  to  exclude  untrained  persons  en- 
tirely from  the  schools  and  greatly  raise  the  competency 
of  the  teaching  force  and  the  efficiency  of  the  schools  of 
the  state.  This  would  not  interfere  with  the  usefulness  of 
regular  normal  school  work ;  the  output  of  the  high  school 
training  course  would  take  the  place  of  those  who  now 
teach  without  any  training. 

It  might  prove  desirable  to  recognize  certain  strong 
schools  in  various  parts  of  the  state  as  special  state  high 
schools^  on  account  of  their  high  efficiency.  Any  one 
who  is  familiar  with  the  schools  of  the  state  will  at  once 
think  of  certain  schools  which  are  far  in  advance  in  prac- 
tical instruction,  and  are  already  serving  a  large  area  be- 
yond their  own  district  boundaries.  This  would  in  no 
way  hinder  co-operation  with  other  schools  as  outlined 
above. 

Such  recognition  would  be  based  upon  provision  for 
full  courses  in  several  imi>ortant  lines,  such  as  agricul- 
ture, home  economics,  teaching,  business,  mechanical 
work,  etc. 

2. — Junior  Colleges. 

Second,  to  provide  some  college  facilities  for  regions 
remote  from  the  University,  enter  into  co-oi)erative  rela- 


22 

tions  with  the  largest,  best  equipped  and  most  centrally 
located  high  schools.  With  a  moderate  amount  of  aid 
from  the  State  fund  these  schools  would  extenrl  their 
work  to  include  two  years  of  college;  that  is,  they  would 
become  Junior  Colleges.  In  return  for  the  state  aid,  they 
would  receive  eligible  students  free  from  any  part  of  the 
state. 

The  Junior  Colleges  would  do  work  in  such  lines  as 
these : 

1.  Continue  the  vocational  work  of  the  high  school  for 
many  who  would  not  go  away  for  further  schooling — in 
agriculture,  home  economics,  business  training,  mechanic 
arts,  etc.,  always  adapting  the  work  to  the  special  con- 
ditions and  taking  advantage  of  the  industrial  and  com- 
mercial activities  of  the  region. 

2.  Agricultural  training  of  the  most  practical  and  val- 
uable kind  could  be  given;  the  work  could  be  linked  up 
with  the  actual  agricultural  and  horticultural  industry  of 
the  locality. 

3.  Train  teachers^  giving  courses  similar  to  those  given 
by  the  advanced  department  of  a  normal  school. 

4.  Give  scientific,  literary  and  practical  courses  such 
as  are  included  in  the  first  two  years  of  the  University,  so 
that  all  who  wished  might  enter  the  third  year  of  the  Uni- 
versity with  full  credit. 

5.  Besides  thus  benefitting  students  it  would  extend 
its  advantages  to  the  community  in  general,  opening  the 
way  for  older  people  to  attend  special  classes,  study  sub- 
jects in  which  they  were  interested,  and  hear  lectures  and 
addresses  given  by  members  of  the  college  faculty.  Thus 
the  college  would  become  a  great  asset  to  the  community 
at  large.  The  college  would  have  on  its  staff  experts  in 
the  various  arts  and  sciences  whose  services  would  be  al- 
ways available.  This  extension  work  could  be  linked  up 
with  that  of  the  University,  to  the  great  advantage  of  all 
concerned. 

The  application  of  this  plan  to  Pocatello  has  already 
been  referred  to.  The  Pocatello  Junior  College  would 
be  the  natural  center  for  the  great  southeast  section  of 
the  state,  containing  more  than  one-third  of  the  total 
population.  From  this  section  more  than  190  young 
people  went  this  year  to  the  University  or  to  other  states 
to  attend  college. 


23 

The  next  center  would  naturally  be  Boise,  for  the 
Southwest  section.  The  Boise  High  School  is  already 
widely  known  for  its  progressive  work,  especially  in  vo- 
cational education.  It  enrolled  this  year  989  students,  in- 
cluding no  less  than  160  from  outside  the  district.  The 
addition  of  junior  college  work  would  be  easy,  economical 
and  progressive.  From  the  Southwest  region  over  200 
students  went  to  college  this  year  at  the  State  University 
or  in  other  states. 

These  two  centers  would  probably  be  sufficient  for  the 
present;  as  the  state  developed,  the  system  could  be 
adapted  and  extended  to  fit  the  needs. 

The  Junior  Colleges  w^ould  be  known  as  Junior  Col- 
leges of  the  University  of  Idaho,  and  students  would  pass 
freely  from  the  Junior  colleges  to  the  University. 
3. — Training  of  Teachers. 

Normal  Tlraining  would  be  provided  in  two  ways: 

1.  The  larger  co-operating  high  schools  would  give 
courses  for  teachers,  with  a  special  reference  to  the  rural 
and  other  elementary  schools. 

2.  The  Junior  Colleges  would  give  normal  courses 
under  careful  supervision  from  the  state. 

4. — Financial  Side  of  Co-operative  Plan. 

The  details  of  apportioning  funds  in  such  a  plan  will 
have  to  be  worked  out  in  conference  with  school  author- 
ities, taking  account  of  the  apportionment  of  state  and 
county  school  funds.  The  essential  points,  however,  are 
clear  in  advance  as  follows : 

(1.)  The  money  now  being  spent  in  the  Academy  and 
the  Albion  Normal  School  would  meet  all  the  state's 
obligations  under  the  co-operative  plan,  for  Junior  Col- 
leges and  co-operative  high  schools,  and  also  for  neces- 
sary direction  and  supervision. 

(2.)  The  plan  would  take  care  of  four  or  five  times  as 
many  students  as  does  the  present  system. 

(3).  About  20  per  cent  of  the  fund  would  suffice  for 
the  junior  colleges,  leaving  the  bulk  for  the  co-operative 
high  schools. 

(4.)  The  financial  saving  would  be  great.  Most  of 
the  money  would  go  into  the  treasuries  of  districts  carry- 


24 

< 

ing  a  heavy  burden  of  high  school  work,  caused  by  enroll- 
ment of  pupils  from  outside  the  district.  Parents  would 
be  relieved  from  tuition  fees,  and  from  sending  their 
children  far  off  to  school  or  colleges;  the  small  districts 
would  be  encouraged  to  dispense  with  high  school  classes, 
using  instead  the  nearest  co-operative  high  school. 

5. — University  Organization. 

The  State  Normal  School  at  Lewiston  should  be  con- 
nected closely  with  the  University,  making  the  Normal 
School  a  department  of  the  University  for  the  higher 
training  of  teachers.  This  plan  has  great  possibilities  of 
co-operation  and  efficiency.  The  two  institutions  are  so 
close  to  each  other  that  both  students  and  teachers  could 
be  transferred  with  ease.  Students  could  do  part  of  their 
work  to  advantage  in  one  place  and  part  in  the  other. 
Teachers  and  lecturers  on  special  subjects  could  serve  in 
both  places  alternately. 


Thus  the  whole  system  of  higher  education  would  be 
unified;  the  high  schools  would  lead  to  the  junior  colleges 
in  their  own  vicinity,  the  junior  colleges  to  the  University. 
The  whole  organization  would  be  planned  with  the  one 
aim  of  meeting  the  needs  of  the  young  people  and  of  the 
state,  and  consequently  each  part  would  be  adapted  to 
every  other  part. 

6. — Advantages  of  This  Plan. 
It  would : — 

1.  Open  the  door  of  a  good  high  school  free  and  not 
far  distant  for  every  boy  and  girl  prepared  to  enter. 

2.  Provide  Junior  Colleges  and  more  adequate  Nor- 
mal work  for  South  Idaho. 

3.  Enable  parents  to  keep  their  child/ren  longer  at 
home  or  near  home,  and  still  have  them  advance  in  their 
schooling.     This  would  be  a  great  saving  financially. 

4.  Provide  for  at  least  three  times  as  many  young 
people  of  high  school  and  college  age  as  does  the  present 
plan,  and  at  no  increase  of  cost. 


25 

5.  Give  a  fair  remuneration  to  high  schools  which  are 
now  taking  in  pupils  from  other  districts,  largely  at  their 
own  expense;  this  would  lighten  the  financial  burden  of 
many  districts  maintaining  high  schools. 

6.  Relieve  parents  from  paying  tuition  fees  for  their 
children  attending  high  school  in  other  districts. 

7.  Aid  the  high  schools  to  develop  work  in  agriculture, 
home  economics,  training  courses  for  teachers,  and  other 
vocational  work,  suited  to  local  needs  and  conditions. 

8.  Tiend  to  keep  small  districts  from  building  up  high 
schools  at  the  expense  of  the  elementary  grades;  instead 
they  could  send  their  older  pupils  to  the  nearest  free  high 
school. 

9.  Eliminate  all  wasteful  duplication  among  state 
schools  and  between  the  state  schools  and  the  public 
schools. 

10.  The  co-operating  schools  would  strengthen  their 
courses  in  order  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  plan, 
and  hence  the  whole  high  school  system  would  be  im"- 
proved  and  all  the  students  benefitted. 

11.  In  brief,  without  added  cost  to  the  State  funds, 
and  with  less  cost  to  school  districts  and  parents,  it  would 
distrihute  educational  opportunity  as  justly  and  widely 
as  possible  throughout  the  state. 


Erratum: — Page    9,    line    7,    read    "eight"    instead    of 
"twelve." 


26 


K)IiS, 

1913-14. 

O  ha 

l5§ 

Summer 
session 
1313- 
6  weeks 

479 

567 

201 

233 

361 

138 

54 

214 

263 

244 

125 

TABIiE  I.— ENROLLMENT  IN   STATE    SCHOOLS, 

^Gradeof  Work-, 

Hifirh 

School     Short 
Grade   Courses 

University 88 

Lewiston  Normal  School 128 

Albion   Normal   School    160 

Academy     244 

Totals     532  88  766        1386  722 


Special  Schools. 

School  for  Deaf  and  Blind. 
Blind    14 

Deaf    50 

—     64 
Industrial  Training  School  varies  from  200  to  230. 


TABLE    II. — COMPARATIVE    GROWTH    OF    INSTITUTIONS. 

1907-1913  (Regular  Session  Only.) 

Lewiston  Albion  Academy 

, — University -->            N.  S.  N.S.  of  Idaho 

1907-   8     280           (174)*           173  156  206 

1908-9     337          (206)*          199  153  215 

1909-10     368           (165)*          272  186  243 

1910-11     409          (118)*          389  176  295 

1911-12    489             (59)*          424  171  284 

1912-13    536            (32)*          359**  186  230 

1913-14 567                                   361**  214  244 

* — ^Figures  in  parenthesis  are  the  preparatory  school,  abolished 
in  1913. 


•• — ^Falling  off  due  to  elimination     of    courses    duplicating  high 
school  work  and  reduction  in  number  of  secondary  students;  in  1913- 

14,2  3  3  students  out  of  the   3G1  at  I^ewiston  are  ot  collegiate  rank. 


27 


TABLG  III.— ATTENDANCE  AT  STATE  INSTITUTIONS  BY  COUN- 
TIES, 1913-14. 

(Does  Not  Include  Summer  Session,  nor  Students  from  Other  States.) 

No.  per 

No.  of  1000 

children  L<ewis-  child'n 

of  school  Uuiver-  ton        Albion       Acad-  school 

County—                     age,  1913  sity  N.S.         N.  S.          emy         Total  ag-e 

Ada    9,601  49  7            8              1            65  6.77 

Adams     9S6  3  2                                           5  5 

Bannock    6,366  15  7            7          119          148  23.24 

Bear  Lake    3,069  2  10            12  3.91 

Bingham     5,020  7  7            10            24  4.78 

Blaine    2,718  8  2          10            11            31  11.04 

Boise      1,677  7  3            2               113  7.75 

Bonner    3,985  22  7                                         29  7.27 

Bonneville     4,602  5  11              6            22  4.78 

Canyon    9,400  29  29          13               4            75  7.97 

Cassia    3,554  4  62              4            70  19.69 

Clearwater    1,2S0  4  8                                         12  9.37 

Custer    829  1  2               8            11  13.26 

Elmore    1,344  4  7            2              4            17  12.64 

Franklin      3,264  4  4  1.22 

Fremont    3,622  6  1          29            16            52  14.35 

Gooding     1,412  5  3              7            15  10.62 

Idaho     4,211  15  18                                         33  7.83 

Jefferson     2,529  3  3              6  2.37 

Kootenai      7,434  30  19                                         49  6.59 

Latah 6,564  166  28            1                         195  29.07 

Lemhi      1,034  3  5               8  7.73 

Lewis     2,240  10  IS                                         28  12.50 

Lincoln    1,232  2  6            9               4            21  17.04 

Madison     4,118  5  5  1.21 

Minidoka     1,828  4  5              1             10  5.47 

Nez  Perce 5,044  20  131                                      161  29.98 

Oneida     2,228  2  4              6  2.69 

Owyhee    932  4  7                            11  11.80 

Power    1,475  15  6  4.06 

Shoshone    3,061  23  4                                        27  8.81 

Twin    Falls     4,828  21  C          11               4             42  8.69 

Washington    2,880  8  6                            3            17  5.91 


28 


TABIiE  IV.— HOW  STUDENTS  TRAVEL  TO  STATE  EDUCATIONAL. 

INSTITUTIONS. 


Explanation: 

D  =DiiiTersitj 
L  =Leffiston  Normal 
A  -Albion 
Ac=Aeademj 

I 

From 

South  Idaho 

to  school  in 

North  Idaho 

2 

From 
North  Idaho 
to  school  in 
South  Idaho 

3 

Sum  of  (1) 
and  (2)  total 

who  made 
"big- jump" 

4 

No.  who  trav- 
eled to  school 
in  their  own 
section 

5 

No.  who  at- 
tended school 
in  home 
town 

Totals 

Students  of 
Hierh  School 
grade  (2) 

U    48 

y  62 

L.     14  1 

A      0) 
Ac    0) 

62= 

10.5% 

U    21  ■)   ^^^ 

I,     55 .    325= 

A    92  1     55% 
Acl57J          /^ 

U    261 

L     69  [  204= 

ic?^^-'% 

U    95  1 

L   138    \      eg, 

A  128  r  ^^^ 

Ac235  J 

Students  of  first 
two  colleg-e 
years 

U    91) 

U48 
h    57) 

Ac    0) 

U    III  149= 
k    'If  35.6% 

A     S2f44.6% 

U    44)     Q-j— 

U  207 

L  161V      419 

A    51 

Students  of 
upper  two  years 
of  college  (uni- 
versity only) 

61 

61= 
49.2% 

35= 
28.2% 

28= 
22.6% 

U               124 

Totals 

U  200) 

|271 
L,    71) 

Ac    0) 

272 

U  1281 
L  124  i    547 
A  138  [  ^^ 
Acl57J 

U  1031 

L  104  .    320 

A    35 '^  320 

Ac  78 

1,139 

Notes:— 1.  This  table  does  not  include  (a)  students  from  other  States;  (b)  special 
music  and  correspondence  students. 
2.  A  considerable  number  of  these  students,  especially  in  column  1,  are 
Hig-h  School  g-raduates,  but  they  are  in  classes  which  can  be  entered 
without  graduation  from  High  School. 

TABLE    v.— STATE    FUNDS   FOR    EDUCATIONAL    INSTITUTIONS, 
BIENNIUM  1913-14. 

For  All  Purposes,  Maintenance,  Equipment,  Buildings  and  Permanent 

Improvements. 
Legislative 

appropriat'n     Income  from 
(raised  by       school  lands         Biennial  Annual 

taxation)         (estimated)  Total  Total 

University    $198,900  $140,000  $338,900  $169,450.00 

Lewiston  N.  S 131,382  27,600  158,982  79,491.00 

Albion  N.  S 86,000  27,600  113,600  56,800.00 

Academy  of  Idaho 100,500  15,800  116,300  58,150.00 

Industrial   Tr,    School    .  .    117,000  13.900  130,900  65,450.00 

Deaf  &  Blind  School   .  .         72,000  1,939  73,950  36,979.50 

Totals     $705,782        $226,859        $932,641        $466,320.50 

NOTES. 

1. — In  addition  to  the  above  fund  sappropriated  directly  to  the  Uni- 
versity the  following  funds  were  provided  for  special  purposes,  to  be 
used  under  the  direction  of  the  university: 

Pure   Seed   Inspection    $10,000 

Hog  Cholera  Prevention    5,000 

Beet  Sugar  Experiment  Station  Buildings  (bonds)    .  .  .      6,000 

2. — The  university  received  Federal  funds  to  the  amount  of  $80,000 
per  annum;  $50,000  of  this  is  available  for  instruction,  $30,000  is  used 
in  the  Experiment  Station. 

3. — As  elsewhere  explained,  24  per  cent  of  the  funds  of  the  univer- 
sity is  expended  for  agricultural  experiment,  demonstration  and  ex- 
periment. Full  details  of  the  expenditure  of  all  the  funds  will  be 
given  in  the  biennial  report. 


29 


TABLE  VI.— COMPARATIVE  STATISTICS  OF  UNIVERSITY  WORK 

IX  NORTHWEST  STATES,   1913-14. 

A.    Enrollment. 

(Includes  University,   Agricultural   College,   Engineering   and   Mining.) 
Figures  obtained  direct  from  institutions. 

No.  of  ^^^  included 
students  ^ »»  totals-, 
per  1000  Pre- 
popula-  Regu-     Short     Summer    Nor-      para- 
State—                                        tioni  Total           lar       course      session      mal       torj 

Idaho      2.22  768  479  88^         201  ? 

Washington      3.88        4748        3561        222  965  257 

Oregon      4.66        3285        2286        669  330  285 

Montana     2.54  997  625        361  11  150 

LTtah    5.75        2215        1058        132        1025        317        216 

Wyoming      1.97  299  150  149  55  45 

Nevada     3.92  340  305  12  47  24 

1.  Population  estimates  used  are  taken  from  U.  S.  Commissioner 
of  Education's  Report,  1912,  Vol.  II.,  pp.  10. 

2.  This  includes  18  duplicates;  other  summer  enrollments  include 
duplicates,  number  not  known. 

3.  These  "short  courses"  are  really  nearly  full  time,  and  being 
agricultural  are  quite  as  expensive  as  most  regular  courses.  Some 
"short  courses"  are  only  two  or  three  weeks. 


TABLE      VII.  —  COMPARATIVE      STATISTICS      ON      UNIVERSITY 
WORK  IN  NORTHWEST  STATES. 

(Includes  University,   Agricultural  College,   Engineering,   Mining,    Pro- 
fessional  Schools,   Extension  Work.) 

B.    Total   State   Maintenance   Funds.* 

(Appropriations  for  Permanent  Improvements  and  Federal  Funds  Not 

Included.) 

Amount 
Popula-  per  1000 

tion  An'ual  State  of 

State— Year—  (estimat'd)    maintenance  population** 

Idaho — 1911-12     345,640  $113,462  $328.00 

Montana — 1911-12      392,294  234,000  596.00 

Washington — 1911-12     1,218,330  688,552  565.00 

Oregon — 1911-12     704,485  324,006  459,00 

Wyoming — 1911-12     152,502  91,690  601.00*** 

Utah — 1911-12     385,171  284,653  739.00*** 

Nevada — 1911-12    86,714  112,960  1290.00*** 

Idaho — 1913-14     350,000  158,550  453.00 

Utah — 1913-14     390,000  281,500  722.00 

Oregon — 1913-14     713,290  485,700  681.00 

Montana — 1913-14     397,200  339,16:6  854.00 

Wyoming — 1913-14     154,000  90,000  584.00 

(Data  for  other  states  for  current  year  not  yet  complete.) 

*A11  figures  for  1911-12  are  taken  from  United  States  Bureau  of 
Education,  1912,  Bulletin  No.  33,  "Statistics  of  State  Universities,  etc." 
Pp.   18-21.      Figures  for  1913-14   from  institutions   direct. 

** Population  is  a  better  guide  than  students  enrolled  for  three 
main  reasons:  (1)  enrollment  figures  are  exceedingly  unreliable  for 
comparison;  a  student  who  attends  a  week  may  be  counted  the  same 
as  one  who  attends  the  whole  year;  (2)  the  funds  cover  a  statewide 
work,  in  varying  proportions,  in  the  case  of  Idaho  24  per  cent  is  so 
applied;  (3)  population  gives  a  more  correct  idea  of  the  need  of  higher 
education  than  does  the  enrollment. 

***This  covers  some  normal  school  work  also.  See  enrollment 
figures   in   Table  VI. 


30 


TABUS  Vin.— NORMAIj  schools,  ENROLIiMBNT  AND  OUTPUT. 

1908-1918. 

, I^ewiston .       , Albion s 

Enroll-  Certifi-         Enroll-  Certifi- 

Year—  ment         Diplomas*        cates  ment         Diplomas      cates 

1908  173  9  36  156  14 

1909  199  17  32  153  4 

1910  272  25  39  186  19  14 

1911  389  38  46  176  10  18 

1912  424  43  106  171  15  28 

1913  359**  45  99  186  16  59 

*  The  diplomas  indicate  completion  of  the  full  normal  school 
course,  and  are  the  truest  statistical  index  of  the  fulfilment  of  the 
function  of  the  normal  school  as  distinguished  from  a  secondary 
school.  Certificates  are  given  for  shorter  courses,  in  some  cases 
covering  only  one  year  above  the  eighth  grade. 

**  Falling  off  due  to  elimination  of  secondary  courses  and  stu- 
dents. 


